WHITTIER — The Whittier Courthouse will be closed to the public beginning June 3, about a month earlier than originally scheduled, according to the Los Angeles County Superior Court.

“Following that, some staff will be there, but the building will not be open for court business,” said Mary Hearn, director of public information for the Los Angeles Superior Court.

Whittier cases have been or will be transferred to courthouses in Los Angeles, Long Beach, Chatsworth, Norwalk, Bellflower and Downey, depending on the type of case and in some cases, depending on the person’s ZIP code. Traffic tickets issued by Whittier police will be heard in Bellflower. L.A. Sheriff’s Department and CHP tickets will be heard in Downey.

Felonies will be heard in Norwalk, but only after the arraignment stage. Felonies filed by Whittier police will be arraigned in Bellflower, with sheriff’s and CHP cases in Downey. After arraignment they will be transferred to Norwalk for preliminary hearing and trial or the Early Disposition Program, or a plea bargain.

The closure of Whittier’s courthouse, and nine others in Los Angeles County was announced in November by Los Angeles Superior Court officials who said they were facing a $55 million to $85 million deficit for fiscal year 2013-14. The Beverly Hills courthouse later was allowed to retain one traffic arraignment court. And the Catalina courthouse was allowed be open every other Friday.

The closure plan spawned a flurry of opposition efforts, including lawsuits filed in state and federal courts, demonstrations by SEIU Local 7212, a union that represents many court workers, lobbying by city and county officials and letters sent to the presiding judge of the Los Angeles Superior Court, the Legislature and Gov. Jerry Brown.

However, those efforts have failed, as Carlos Polhamus, a Spanish interpreter for the court and outspoken critic of the closure, told the Whittier City Council recently.

“It’s a done deal,” said Polhamus, who has addressed the council several times urging municipal action to prevent the closure.

“May 31, the last judge will leave,” he said. “If you look from the clerk’s office, all the shelves have been removed. It’s being gutted to the max. Department 6 is full of boxes almost to the ceiling. “

A spokeswoman for the Sheriff’s Department, who asked not to be identified because she was not authorized to talk about the closure, said the only people who will be allowed in the building after May 31 will be clerks picking up files and maintenance staff.

“It won’t be an operational building any more,” she said.

Departments 2, 3 and 5 will be the last courts to leave, she said.

Superior Court has 47 employees at the Whittier Courthouse. There are about 230 employees at the 10 courthouses set for closure or reductions. Hearn said jobs will be lost as a result of the consolidation. Seniority will likely be the determing factor, with some employees whose jobs are eliminated transferring, and less senior persons getting pink slips.

The three story building was built in 1972 and contains seven courtrooms.

What will happen to the building in the future remains unclear.

However, the closure will not trigger earthquake retrofit or Americans with Disabilities Act requirements, according to a spokeswoman for the California Administrative Office of Courts. It had been rumored that the court could not open again if it closed without the retrofit and upgrades.

Teresa Ruano, spokeswoman for the office, said the state has many buildings that need upgrades and retrofits, and they are prioritized on an as funds become available basis.

The buildings are maintained in caretaker status, which allows them to return to operation on short notice if funding becomes available. Ruano said the problems the closures cause, especially to public access to the court system, won’t be resolved until the courts are adequately funded.

“The courts are struggling just to keep operating,” she said.

While most states fund their courts on a 2-cents to the general fund dollar basis, California is funding its courts on a one-cent to the dollar level, she said.

Until the Legislature comes to terms with the funding needs of the courts, the courts will continue to struggle, she said.

Whittier City Manager Jeff Collier said the city was hopeful until the governor released his revised budget May 14, which failed to push more money to the courts.

“That, I think, was the last hope,” he said.

Councilman Joe Vinatieri, with the support of council members Cathy Warner and Fernando Dutra, asked that the courthouse be placed on the agenda of a future meeting to explore possible opportunities for Whittier

“I think we need to talk about that facility, what’s going to happen to it, any opportunities for the city of Whittier,” he said.

“Heaven knows we tried hard to keep that courthouse here, to keep the judges here, to keep those employees here,” he said. “But if we’ve lost, then I think we need to talk about the building and if there’s a potential use for the city of Whittier. “